California Baptist University
5-16,2-8Big West
UC Riverside
4-17,0-10Big West
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UC Riverside | 18 | 16 | 25 | 25 | 15 | 2 |
| California Baptist | 25 | 25 | 18 | 22 | 17 | 3 |
10/24/2026 10:14:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
RIVERSIDE, CA--- The California Baptist University women's volleyball team swept the Crosstown Showdown on Saturday night as they bested the UCR Highlanders in five sets for the second straight night.
The win is the first back-to-back win for the Lancers this season and makes it the seventh win in eight matchups against UCR in the DI Era.
The Lancers would dominate the opening set, leading early and holding the advantage throughout. A 4-1 run at the midway point of the set would gift the Lancers a six-point lead and would force UCR to burn both timeouts. The Highlanders would make up a little ground toward the back half of the set, but the Lancers would end it on an Eleftheria Baxa kill to win the frame 25-18. CBU similarly dominated the second set as it did in the first set, fueled by a 6-0 run that led to a dominant 25-16 victory over the Highlanders for a commanding 2-0 lead.
Errors plagued the Lancers mightily in the third set as they would commit 15 in the frame and would hit -0.111 in the match. UCR would capitalize on those mistakes to the tune of an 8-0 run that would give them a 20-14 lead, and they would finalize the set win by a final score of 25-18. The momentum flipped toward the Highlanders in the fourth set as they started the set off on a 6-1 run. CBU would respond and tie the match shortly after, but UCR would once again take the lead back and would wind up winning the frame 25-22 to send the match to a fifth set.
This would be the fourth five-set match at home for the Lancers this season as they would look to pick up their first five-setter of the year in Van Dyne Gym. The set would be a high-stakes back-and-forth battle with both teams fighting hard to win the Crosstown Showdown. CBU led 8-7 at the media timeout, as neither team had scored more than two points in a row. UCR took back the lead at 11-10 to force Trevor Johnson to huddle up, and the Lancers would respond with a 3-0 run that would force UCR to burn both critical timeouts. UCR came out of their timeout with three straight points to reach set point at 14-13. CBU would get a critical kill from Anaiya Campbell to force extra points and keep the match alive. CBU would outscore UCR 3-1 in the final stretch to claim the victory and sweep the Crosstown Showdown.
Campbell was the star of the show as the freshman would score a career-high 24 kills on a .417 hitting percentage. The 24 kills were the second most in the DI era in a single match and tied her teammate Nalanie Neal for the most by a freshman in program history. Emery DeJong continued her hot streak, recording 19 kills and leading the team with 15 digs. Maddie Brown tied her career-high for the second consecutive night with 51 assists and would add two kills, two aces, and two blocks. Mia Rossman stepped into the starting libero role and posted a season-best 14 digs and had six assists.
"What a great win for our program and university, really proud of the grit and determination from our girls tonight. We came together when it mattered most, and I am just really proud of our resiliency and fight," remarked Head Coach Trevor Johnson about the five-set victory.
NEXT: The Lancers will remain at home for two more conference matches beginning with Utah Valley on Friday night at Van Dyne Gym.
